Astrophysics > High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

Title:
Search for GeV counterparts to fast radio bursts with Fermi

Abstract: The non-repeating fast radio bursts (FRBs) could arise from catastrophic
stellar explosions or magnetar giant flares, so relativistic blast waves might
be produced in these events. Motivated by this, we here search for GeV
counterparts to all non-repeating FRBs with Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT),
including FRB 131104 that is claimed to be possibly associated with a gamma-ray
transient candidate detected by Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT). FRB 131104
enters the field of view (FoV) of LAT ~5000s after the burst time, so we are
only able to search for the GeV afterglow emission during this period, but no
significant GeV emission is detected. We also perform a search for GeV
emissions from other FRBs, but no significant GeV emissions are detected
either. Upper limit fluences in the range of (4.7-29.2)x10^(-7) erg/cm2 are
obtained, and then the upper limits of the isotropic blast wave kinetic energy
of about (1-200)x10^(53) erg are inferred under certain assumptions. Although
the current limits on the isotropic blast wave energy are not sufficiently
stringent to rule out the connection between FRBs and GRB-like transients,
future more sensitive observations with Fermi or Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov
Telescopes might be able to constrain the connection.